In modern marine seismic streamer systems, a vessel tows a long cable with a large number of sensors. Recent developments in such systems have simultaneously focused on making them light, durable, easy to manufacture and maintain, as well as sensitive to the acoustic signals of interest while remaining relatively immune to noise. These developments have lead to improvements in sensor elements, such as those disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,541,894; 5,663,931; 5,677,894; and others, which have been increasingly durable and which eliminate the long vexing problem of distortion due to harmonics.
Another improvement in sensor technology was disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,632,841 to Hellbaum et al. which teaches a method for forming ferroelectric wafers including a pre-stress layer. This method results in an arcuate sensor which is particularly sensitive to an acoustic signal.
However, there remains a need for a structure which incorporates this improved sensor in a manufacturable marine seismic streamer. Such a structure may use the arcuate sensor element of Hellbaum et al., or it may use more conventional flat or domed diaphragm elements with a conventional flat piezoelectric sensor.